Wednesday, November 12, 2014

Students in Mrs. Marr and Mrs. Sidik’s English classes
explored the nature of heroes and monsters in stories and novels in the first
quarter.Students marveled that ancient
Greeks asked similar questions about nature, human behavior and the origin of things
in myths created thousands of years ago. Ancient Greek myths have
persisted for so long because they explore mysteries that we still face today,
and because they are so emotionally and intellectually engaging. How can
we forget the dread we feel when Ulysses arrogantly reveals his true name to
the Cyclops Polyphemus and is cursed by his father Poseidon? Or the
disappointment we feel when Ulysses’ men betray him again and again by
sabotaging their return home?Students
have analyzed the heroic, yet flawed, nature of Ulysses (Odysseus) in Bernard
Evslin's The Adventures of Ulysses, an adaptation of Homer's Odyssey, and are
applying what they know to Beowulf in Robert Nye's adaptation of the
Scandinavian epic.They are thinking
critically about the dual nature of man and the values that a culture expresses
through its literature. Students have been annotating texts with Post-Its and
writing double-entry journals (DEJ) to show their analyses of characters, plot
and theme.They have been refining their
writing skills by composing essays with engaging openings, clear thesis
statements and specific evidence from the text.They have used the Quizlet and Edmodo Apps to work on their vocabulary
skills.For their creative writing
assignment this quarter, students are composing stories featuring heroes and
monsters. Their stories are a wonderful amalgamation of the myths and
fantasy novels they have read. Inspired by the vivid stories and images
of Greek gods, monsters and heroes in stories, in picture books, in digital
texts on the Subtext App, in nonfiction texts, and in The Adventures of
Ulysses, students have researched myths in Flex class. They have written
an essay making and supporting a claim about the myths that they have read. For
enrichment, students may volunteer to participate in a Mythology Bee or in a
lunch book club discussing Rick Riordan’s new novel The Blood of Olympus.Students are encouraged to submit writing
pieces to The Rebel Pen, South Middle’s Art and Literary Magazine, and to Middleview,
South Middle's student newspaper.Looking
ahead to the second quarter, we will be focusing on historical fiction and
nonfiction by studying 1776, The Musical, reading My Brother Sam Is Dead,
participating in historical fiction book clubs, and reading The Notorious
Benedict Arnold or Lincoln’s Grave Robbers, both written by visiting author
Steve Sheinkin. The after-school tutorials in English Language Arts and
math have begun.If you received a
letter about your child’s participation in the tutorial(s), please encourage
your child to attend to improve his or her skills.Finally, a special thanks goes to the PTA for
organizing and managing the Book Fair.It is wonderful to see students excited about owning, reading and
sharing the books they purchase.

Team Hero is so proud of our students for their participation in the Thank-A-Veteran Event. Their respectful behavior and intelligent dialogue with the visiting veterans earned them many compliments from the veterans, their family members, school staff and administrators. On November 6th and 7th, 2014, the teachers and seventh grade students of Team Hero hosted a special event honoring men and women who have served our country in the armed forces and we will be sharing what we learned in a special history project. Faculty members and students displayed artifacts from family members that have served in the military. Students interviewed veterans from the local VFW in addition to other veterans from the community, and recorded their experiences. In the end, we hope the event instills in our students the importance of showing gratitude and paying respect to the brave men and women who have made tremendous sacrifices in protecting our freedom and our way of life. (November 2014)

Team Hero would like to thank the PTA for their hard work organizing and managing the Book Fair. The event presents a wonderful opportunity for students to share their love of reading and encourages meaningful conversations about literacy. We look forward to it every year! (October 2014)

Monday, September 1, 2014

You are officially in the middle of middle school. It's going to be a great year! You will learn so much about yourself, others and the world. I look forward to helping you make progress in your reading, writing, listening, speaking, organization and technology skills.Please bring your Summer Reading Assignment to class the first day of school. We will spend the first week of school getting to know each other by discussing and writing about what you have read this summer.